Wicket door screen



United States Patent Marshall V. Noecker Grosse Pointe, Michigan Oct. 22, 1969 Dec. 8, 1970 Kaufman Windown and Door Corporation Detroit, Michigan a corporation of Michigan Inventor Appl. No. Filed Patented Assignee WICKET DOOR SCREEN 6 Claims, 4 Drawing Figs.

US. Cl.......

Int. Cl. E06b 9/17 Field of Search 160/1 80,

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,854,072 9/1958 Winnan 160/180 3,143,165 8/1964 Lewis et al 160/394 3,288,200 11/1966 Gagne 160/180 Primary Examiner-Kenneth Downey Attorney-Woodhams, Blanchard and Flynn 1 WICKET noon SCREEN FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a closure'structure such as a screen and, in particular, relates to a screen having wickets movably mounted thereon. 1

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Screens utilizing sliding wickets to provide openings therethrough are well known in the closure art. Such screens have generally provided a sliding wicket adjacent the lower edge thereof, such as adjacent the lower corners. Most of these prior known screen constructions having sliding wickets have provided a main frame covered with screen cloth, same being secured to the main frame by conventional screen retainers which are received in grooves formed in the main frame. To provide for a sliding wicket, the prior known screen constructions have further generally provided a separate channel-shaped guide member which is suitably secured to the main frame, the edges of the wicket being slideably received therein for slideable movement therealong.

Screens utilizing sliding wickets and constructed as above described have been relatively expensive since they require a separate retainer for anchoring the screen cloth and a separate guide member for mounting and guiding the wicket. This construction also requires a further assembly operation in that the wicket guide members must be fixedly secured to the main frame of the screen, as by metal screws.

Another disadvantage of screens having slideable wickets constructed in the manner described above results from the fact that the wicket guide members are generally constructed of aluminum, whereas the frame of the wicket is also generally constructed of aluminum. Screens having wickets constructed in this manner have not generally resulted in free sliding movement of the-wicket since the aluminum frame of the wicket, by being slideably received within the aluminum guide members, results in substantial friction between the wicket frame and the guide members, whereupon the wicket often sticks and is thus not'freely slideable as desired.

Accordingly, it is the object of this invention:

1. To provide a screen construction having an improved mounting structure for a slideable wicket. d

2. To provide a screen construction, as aforesaid, wherein a single mounting member is provided for both securing the screen cloth to the screen frame and providing a guide channel for the slideable wicket.

3. To providea screen construction, as aforesaid, wherein the mounting member is preferably of an L-shaped construction having a first leg portion adapted for clamping the screen cloth to the 'frame and a second channelshaped leg portion for slideably receiving an edge of the slideable wicket.

5. To provide a screen construction, as aforesaid, wherein the mounting member is preferably constructed of a nonmetallic, low friction material, such as plastic, to facilitate free sliding movement of the'wicket.

To provide a screen construction, as aforesaid; wherein substantially similar mounting members surround the wicket opening with two of the mounting members functioning as guide members for the wicket, a third one of the mounting members functioning as a stop for limiting the closing movement of the wicket. 7. To provide a screen construction, as aforesaid, which can be easily and economically constructed and which results in a freely slideable wicket.

Other objects and purposes of the invention will be apparent to persons acquainted with closures of this general type upon reading the following specification and inspecting the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of a screen construction having a slideable wicket adjacent each of the lower comers thereof.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged elevational sectional view of the wicket as taken along the line "-11 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view of the upper portion of FIG. 2 and illustrating the manner in which the upper edge of the wicket is slideably secured to the screen.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged sectional view of the wicket as taken along the line IV-IV of FIG. 1.

Certain terminology will be used in the following description for convenience in reference only and will not be limiting. The words upwardly, .downwardlyh rightwardly and leftwardly willdesignate directions in the drawings to which reference, is made. The word front" will refer to that side of the screen construction which is generally mounted on the exterior sideof the building, the front side being the rightward side of the screen construction illustrated in FIG. 2. The words inwardly and outwardly will refer to directions toward and away from, respectively, the geometric center of the device and designated parts thereof. Said terminology will include thehwords. above specifically mentioned, derivatives thereof and words of similar import.

SUMMARY OF THEINVENTION In general, the objects and purposes of this invention are met by providing a screen construction including a conventional rectangular frame and having a stationary screen cloth extending across the frame and being fixedly secured thereto. The frame is provided with a small opening, which opening is not covered by the screen cloth. A wicket is slideably mounted DETAILED DESCRIPTION FIG. 1 illustrates therein a screen construction 10 having first and second stationary screen cloths 11 and 12 suitably connected in a conventional manner to frame elements as explained below. The screen cloth 12 is of shorter length than the screen cloth 11 so as to define openings adjacent the opposite lower cornersdofthe screen 10, the openings being suitably closed by slideable wickets l3 and 14.

The main frame for the screen 10 comprises substantially parallel upper and lower frame elements 16 and 17 fixedly interconnected by substantially parallel side frame elements 18 and 19. The side frame elements 18 and 19 are interconnected by an intermediate horizontal. frame element 21 which is spaced upwardly from the lower frame element 17. The horizontal frame elements Y17 and 21 are further intercon nected by a pair of substantially parallel, intermediate vertical frame elements 22 and 23. The vertical frame elements 18 and 2:2.and the horizontal framefelements 17 and 21 define a rectangular opening 26 adjacent one corner (the lower right hand corner in FIG. 1) of the screen 10, which opening is covered by the wicket 13. Similarly, the vertical frame elements 19 and 23 and the horizontal frame elements 17 and 21 define a further opening adjacent the lower lefthand corner of the screen construction, which opening is adapted to be covered by tee slideable wicket14. The wickets 13 and 14 and the manner in which they cooperate with their respective openings is identical and. thus only the wicket 13 will be described in detail hereinbelow.

The frame elements 16,- 17, 18, 19, 21, 22 and 23 are generally aluminum extrusions and preferably have substantially identical cross-sectional configurations. Accordingly, only the frame element 17 will be described in detail, it being understood that the other frame elements are either identical to or mirror images of the frame element 17 an L-shaped guidemember 31 fixedly mounted thereon, which guide member is, provided with a base portion 32snugly recie'vedywithin the channel 28'. The guide member 31 is further provided with a leg portion 33 having a downwardly directed ch'ennel, formed therein, which channel slideably receives the upper flange 37 of the slideable wicket 13. The

base portion 32 ispreferably provided with serrated sidewalls defining a plurality of teeth or projections 38 and the interior of the base portion32 is provided with an opening 39 therein so as to provide the base portion with sufficient resiliency to permit same to be inserted into, but snugly engaged within, the channel 28. The base'portion 32 additionally functions as a retaining device since the lower edge of the screen cloth 11 is inserted withinthe channel 28 and is clampedly engaged and held therein by means of the base portion 32 in the manner as illustrated in FIG. 3. The resiliency of the base portion 32, as provided by the projections38 and the opening 39, compensate'fdrvariabl. thicknesses of screen cloth.

The lower frame element 17 is also provided with an L- shaped, guide member 41 (FIG. 2) therein, which guide member is identical to the guide member 31 described above.

I The guide member 41: also has a channel 42 therein, which channel is directed upwardly in opposed relation to the channel 36 andslideably receives therein a lower flange 43 formed on the slideablew'icket l3.

' Considering now the construction of the slideable wicket 13 (FIG. 2), same includes upper and lower frame members 44 and g 46, which frame members have the upper and lower flanges 37 and .43 fixedly, here integrally, secured thereto,

respectively. The upper and lower frame members 44 and 46 are fixedly interconnected by a pair of side frame members 47 and 48 (FIG. 4) so as to define a rectangular frame of substantially the same size as the opening 26. The frame members 44, 46, 47 and 48 are all preferably of extruded aluminum construction and are preferably of identical cross section. Accordingly,only the upper frame member will be described in detail.

The upper frame member 44, as illustrated in FIG. 3, includes a substantial Z-shaped portion 49 which open defines a pair of laterally spaced channels 51 and 52 which open in opposite directions. A wicket screen cloth 53 extends across the rectangularframe defined by the frame members 44, 46, 47

r and 48 and has its edges extending into the channels 52 defined by the respective frame members. The edge of the screening cloth 53 is secured within the channel by means of a conventional screen retainer 56 disposed therein.

Each of the wicket frame members is provided with a flange along the free edge' thereof similar to the flanges 37 and 43 secured to theupper and lower wicket frame members 44 and 46, respectively. Specifically, the slideable wicket frame member 47 has a flange 57 which extends into a channel 58 formedwithi n a further L-shaped member 59 which is snugly received with within the U-shaped channel portion 27 formed on the frame element 18. The L-shaped member 59 is identical to the guide member 31 described in detail above. However, the 'L-s'haped member 59, rather than functioning as a guide for controlling sliding movement of the wicket, functions as a stop member for limiting the movement of the wicket -13 when same is moved toward the closed position (as illustrated in FIG. 4) due to the free edge of the flange 57 abuttin a ainst the bottom wall of the channel 58.

'frame member 22 (FIG. 4), which frame member also has a channel-shaped portion 27 in which isreceived an L-shaped screen retainer 61. The screenretainer 61 comprises a'base portion 62 which is identical to the base portion 32 of the guide member 31 described above. That is, the base portion 62 is provided with an opening in the interior thereof and is provided with projections on the sidewalls thereof to permit same to be resiliently held within the channel portion 27. The base portion functions to clampingly engage; the free edge of the screen cloth 12 within the channel portion 27. The screen retainer 61 is further provided with a leg portion 63 which lies flush with and overlaps the bent edge of the screemcloth 12 to provide a protective guard therefor. The leg portion 63 has a planar guide surface 64 formed thereon which is free of connection with the wicket 13, the surface 64 substantially functioning at a guide surface for maintaining the wicket 13 spaced from the screen cloth 12 as the wicket is slideably moved between open and closed positions.

As illustrated in FIG. 4, the wicket 13 is further provided with a stop pin 66extending rearwardly therefrom, which pin 66 is fixedly secured to the wicket frame member 47. The pin 66 is adapted to contact the vertical frame member 22 asthe wicket is moved to the open position (leftwardly in FIG. 4) to provide a limit for the opening movement thereof.

i The guide members 31 and 41, the stop member 59 and the screen retainer 61 are preferably constructed of anonmetallic material having low friction characteristics. For example, these members in one preferred embodiment of the invention 3 are constructed of plastic since this greatly facilitates the fabrication thereof. Further, constructing these members of plastic facilitates the formation of the projections along the sidewalls of the base portion thereof, which projections then possess sufficient resiliency to permit the members to be snugly held within the channel-shaped recesses formed within the frame members. Further, since the wicket frame members are generally constructed of extruded aluminum, the alu-' minum flanges formed on the wicket will freely slide within the channels formed in the guide members when the guide members are constructed of a hard plasticmaterial, such as nylon.

Use of such hard plastic guide members thus greatly facilitates sliding movements of the wicket 13 from the closed position illustrated in FIG. 4 wherein the flange 57 abuts the bottom of the channel 58 to an open position (leftward movement of the wicket in FIG. 4) wherein the pin 66 abuts the channel portion 26 of the vertical frame member 22.

Iclaim:

l. A screen construction comprising first frame means defining first and second openings, at first screen cloth fixedly secured to said first frame means and extending across said first opening, a wicket having second frame means defining a third opening and a second screen cloth secured tosaid second frame means and extending across said third opening, and means slideably mounting said wicket on said first frame means for permitting movement of the wicket from a-closed position wherein the wicket completely overlies thesecond opening to an open position wherein at least a part of the second opening is free of overlap by the wicket, the improvement wherein:

said first frame means includes first and second substantially parallel frame members positioned adjacent opposite sides of said second opening, each of said frame members having a groove extending longitudinally thereof;

said means slideably mounting the wicket including first and second mounting members extending longitudinally along said first and second frame members, respectively, each mounting member having aflange portion securedly received within the groove of its respective frame member, and each mounting member having a further channellike recess formed therein andextending longitudinally thereof; I

said second frame means'of said wicket having first and second flange means extending longitudinally along opposite sides thereof, ,each flange means being slideably received within the channellike recess of the first and second mounting member respectively; and

said first screen cloth having an edge portion thereof positioned within the groove of said first frame member with said edge portion being clampingly held between said first frame member and the flange portion of said first mounting member.

2. A screen constructionaccording to claim 1, wherein said first and second mounting members are each one-piece elements constructed from a hard, nonmetallic, low friction material.

3. A screen construction according to claim 2, wherein said first and second mounting members are constructed of plastic.

flange portions of said mounting members have substantially parallel sidewalls with said sidewalls having toothlike projec- 4. A screen construction according to claim 3, wherein said first and second mounting members are each substantially L- shaped and having first and second substantially transverse leg portions with said first leg-portion defining the flange portion of said mounting member, said second leg portion having said channellike recess formed therein with said channellike recess opening outwardly from the "free end of said second leg portion, whereby the channellike recesses of said first and second members open outwardly toward one another.

5. A screen construction according to claim 4, wherein the tions extending therefrom, and the flange portion of said mounting member furtherzhaving a central opening extending longitudinally therethrough whereby said flange portion possesses sufficient resiliency to compensate for variable screen cloth thicknesses.

6. A screen construction according to claim 4, wherein said first frame means further include a third frame member extending transversely between said first and second frame member with said third frame member defining a third side of said second opening, said third frame member also having a groove extending longitudinally thereof;

a third L-shaped mounting member having a flange portion securedly received within the groove of said third frame member, said third mounting member also having a leg portion extending transversely from said flange portion,

said leg portion havinga channcllike recess formed therein; and a said second frame means having a third flange means formed on a third side thereof with said third flange means being adapted to slideably extend into the recess of said third frame member," the leg portion of said third mounting member functioning as stop for limiting the closing movement of the wicket. 

